We are about to embark on something big as a family. You many or may not be aware that we’ve felt for a long time that moving to Africa is something that we should do. It has been a song playing over and over in Audrey’s heart since she went with her grandparents at age 12, and over the past few years, Kirk has also been unable to shake this desire to move there. After careful consideration, we have decided to take a leap of faith and make that move. This summer, we will be moving to Nairobi, Kenya, for 3 years.
Last fall, Kirk applied to 11 different international schools in Eastern Africa. Interestingly, only 2 contacted him, and they were the two non-secular schools of the bunch. He was offered (and has accepted) a job teaching and doing technology training for the staff at a Christian school that has been around for almost 70 years. As for Audrey and the girls, the plan for now is for Claire to start ½ day preschool in August, otherwise for the three of us life will be similar to how it is now. We have already made an encouraging amount of contacts with both locals and expats already there who are working on various service opportunities throughout Nairobi in Non Governmental Organizations, so there is a possibility of us getting involved in some of those as well. We will be renting our house here in San Jose so that we have a place to come back to, and Kirk has talked to his district about the possibility of being hired back (they are enthusiastic about that and really hate to see him go)!Nairobi is home to around 3.5 million people, and we will be living in the (largely expat) northwest part of the city. Surprisingly, the school, Rosslyn Academy, has many similarities to Palo Alto HS where he is currently teaching--similar demographics of highly motivated students and a focus on rigorous curriculum. We were impressed by the enthusiasm Kirk’s new bosses have for the school and their commitment to excellence in all areas of a student’s life. About 40% of the students are Americans (it is an American-based curriculum as opposed to the British-style of some international schools). There are many kids of diplomats and multinational workers, and some missionary kids as well. Unfortunately, very few locals can afford the tuition, which is incidentally, waived for our children. It is located in the highlands of Nairobi, close (1 km) to the US Embassy on a 40-acre, guarded compound where the majority of teachers live; 85% live on campus and the other 15% live in secure housing close to the campus. The area of Nairobi it is located in is among, if not the, most secure in the city. Nairobi is much more "westernized" than many assume, and the health care is some of the best on the continent.
The goal for this blog is to share our experiences and pictures with you so that you can "go with us" on the adventure. We understand that this is a lot of information to take in (and we’ll give updates with more specifics as they come to us). In the meantime, we will be packing & purging our stuff so that we can spend as much time as possible with the people we will love and miss so much. If you’ve always wanted our lamps (or whatever), now is the time to speak up! Also, if an African safari is on your bucket list, start checking your calendar for a visit!
Here are some links if you're interested:
About the school--(they have lots of pictures and info there, even some photos of staff housing)
School Directory #1School Directory #2
Just to whet your appetite, this is the main administration building; Rosslyn is built on a former coffee plantation, and it was the main house. They have a flag representing each of the 54 countries that the students come from.
We are excited to see where this journey takes us and how each of us will grow through the experience.
Love,
Kirk, Audrey, Claire & Ainsley
